The Axial Age and its Consequences, edited by Bellah and Boas explores the problem and contends that ""

If you're interested in Buddhism, I wonder what you'd make of my no-holds-barred dialogue between the Buddha and the Marquis de Sade:

https://medium.com/@benjamincain8/marquis-de-sade-versus-the-buddha-4709cc1f6856?source=friends_link&sk=65d7b26a260aaa8a0819c57a55799392